Suspected pre-natal sex determination tests and declining child sex ratio have set the Nellore district administration into ‘mission mode’. It has initiated necessary steps, as the situation appears bleak and is conducting fortnightly reviews with the involvement of doctors and police officers. According to the 2011 Census, the number of girls stood at 939 per 1,000 boys in the district as compared to the ratio of 954 girls according to the 2001 Census.
The major reason for the declining number of girls is female foeticide, which continues, thanks to sex determination tests being conducted at illegal scanning centres.
Determination and disclosure of the sex of the foetus is banned under the Pre-Natal Diagnostics Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1994.
The district administration has taken serious note of the fact that not a single case has been reported for violation of the PNDT Act. District Collector N. Srikanth has directed officials of the Medical and Health Department to keep a vigil and take action against the guilty.
DM&HO K. Koteswari has been told to conduct programmes for creating awareness in rural areas where ignorance and superstitions apparently lead to violation of the PNDT Act.
Typhoid cases
on the rise
Typhoid fever cases are on the rise in Ongole town, thanks to unhygienic conditions in the mushrooming road-side eateries.
Though there has not been an abnormal increase in cases of viral fever and respiratory diseases, the number of typhoid cases have gone up significantly in the last couple of months, says Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences Director B. Anjaiah.
Those who are in the habit of having food from unhygienic road-side eateries are at high risk of contracting typhoid, Dr. Anjaiah said .
The bacterial infection is caused by Salmonella typhi and transmitted through contaminated food and water.
“It is life-threatening if not treated early,” said L. Suneel Kumar Reddy, a paediatrician. Contamination of drinking water compounded the risk of contracting the disease several times, he added.
Dr. Reddy said the number of cases used to be around 30 earlier, and now it has doubled.
Testing of blood and stool samples at periodic intervals is necessary to detect the disease in advance, he added and suggested washing of hands properly, as typhoid bacillus spreads through food or water.
